Crispy Seaweed Chips

I've been drying fruit so much lately - almost too much - and I wanted to try making non-fruit snacks for a change. I also wanted something low in carb and calories. That's when I thought of snacking on sea vegetables!

Dashima (다시마 or kombu in Japanese) is edible kelp and is widely used in Korea to make vegetable stock. It's a good source of amino acid, dietary fiber, and iodine.

Today, I made a traditional Korean appetizer called Dashima Tuigack (다시마튀각). Salty and crunchy, these are a great vegan substitute for potato chips. 

Ingredients

2 cups dried kelp, cut into squares
1 Tbsp Olive oil
Stevia, toasted sesame seeds, paprika, to taste (optional)

Directions

Preheat your oven to 200C.

The kelp is naturally salty so you won't need any additive. In fact, it will be way too salty without rinsing beforehand. To save yourself from rinsing and drying the seaweed again, simply wipe the surface with a clean, damp cloth.

Normally, you would deep-fry them, but I'm really focusing on making relatively healty snacks. Otherwise, I would just buy these chips from a local store :p

Place in a bowl and drizzle with olive oil. Toss to coat. Arrange seaweed in a single layer in a baking pan. Bake for 3-5 minutes.

Don't go anywhere! These chips can burn in the blink of an eye. They will taste bitter if they're burnt. Stand over the oven and keep an eye on them. Remove from heat when bubbles pop at the surface. If your kitchen is quiet enough, you'll hear them start to pop.

You can eat them plain as they are quite salty. Or you can always be creative and add some seasonings to taste. Koreans usually coat them with sugar and toasted sesame seeds. I sprinkled some Stevia as I'm steering away from sugar.